# Overcoming a fear of flying **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 15, 2006, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overcoming-a-fear-of-flying/344708 "2006-02-15T23:04:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overcoming-a-fear-of-flying/344708/21 "2006-02-21T02:44:45Z")
> [@DfrntBreign](#): > > Wait, people do this all the time. Airplanes GLIDE, too. Okay, okay, i got it. Keep the nose up. No thrust. Keep the nose up. Panic causes accidents. Keep the nose up. Keep 'er level. Watch the horizon. How’s the trim? Keep the nose up. No thrust, the stall warning!! Not to nitpick a good story, but “Keep the nose up” is not good advice to someone trying to keep an unpowered aircraft under control. As the stall warning was announcing, this scheme tends to lead to flight at unacceptably low airspeeds. With a plane whose weight and balance is in the ballpark, about all you need to do is to keep the wings approximately level - you can pretty much let the pitch attitude take care of itself. If the airspeed isn’t what’s desired, modest adjustment of pitch trim should suffice to correct it. The general message is that aircraft don’t need engines to fly under complete control. Power _is_ useful for postponing encounters with the ground. ---
**Author:** ![Rysdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7cd45c/32.png) [@Rysdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysdad)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overcoming-a-fear-of-flying/344708/22 "2006-02-21T02:46:55Z")
Northwest Airlines used to have a [Wings Program](http://www.fearlessflying.com/wings.htm) for fearful flyers. They claimed a 90% success rate. I guess that’s one of the things that went down the tubes with all of the financial problems they’ve been having. You can still watch a couple of brief clips at the web site if that helps to assuage any fears. ---
**Author:** ![tsarina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f4b2a3/32.png) [@tsarina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tsarina)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overcoming-a-fear-of-flying/344708/23 "2006-02-21T17:01:43Z")
I don’t have a phobia per se, but I’ve always been a nervous flyer. My justification is, “Yes, I know I have a one-in-a-gazillion chance of dying on this flight… but that’s no comfort if this happens to be that one-in-a-gazillion flight!” I’m most afraid of the airplace parts wearing out and catching on fire (not coincidentally, I noticed I got a lot more nervous after watching a documentary about SwissAir Flight 111). The thing that’s helped me the most is buying the book “Ask the Pilot” by Patrick Smith. He writes an aviation column for [Salon.com](http://Salon.com) that I’ve always enjoyed reading, and he does a nice job of explaining the mechanics of flight and why airplanes move like they do. I took it on a flight from Detroit to New Orleans last year and read the whole thing; it was the easiest flight I’d ever been on! ---
**Author:** ![phungi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phungi/32/395_2.png) [@phungi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phungi)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overcoming-a-fear-of-flying/344708/24 "2006-02-21T17:50:41Z")
I have never been afraid of flying, although I am “aware” during take-off and landing… However, since having 2 children, nowages 4 and 6, I look forward to flying (alone) to read a book or listen to music in peace. Damn, someone will even bring me a pillow and something to drink! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overcoming-a-fear-of-flying/344708.md?page=1)